Twisted Affections
by Derpasaurus
Summary: Yuzu Kurosaki, now the Lieutenant serving under Byakuya Kuchiki has found herself in quite the predicament - How? Well, she's gained feelings for her Captain, meanwhile there's someone else who's planning on confessing very soon, but in a strange way. Rated T, just incase. :)
1. Tsuiho Raito

_Hi there! Derpasaurus here - I've been interested in Yuzu fics lately and this pairing I found was sort of interesting - The ever cheerful and understanding Yuzu Kurosaki, paired with the aloof, refined, handsome and brooding Byakuya Kuchiki - Mix in a meddling older Twin, an overprotective Ichi-nii and some crazy antagonist and you have my weird brain.. :c I hope you like it ^_^_

* * *

_Why won't you call us, Yuzu-chan? _ Questioned a sad, soft voice which boomed through her mind. She knew who it was, of course she did. She couldn't call _them. _How could she, infront of all these people?

Yuzu glanced down at her Zanpakuto that was clutched securely in her left hand and let out a whimper. Her team was ambushed, out of nowhere atleast a dozen semi-dangerous hollows jumped out. It was supposed to be a harmless training mission, a few lesser hollows were meant to come in, and she didn't count on someone besting the officers that patrolled the outskirts, however.

Tsuiho called to her constantly, telling her that she was in desperate need of their aid – She knew that she needed them; an unsealed Zanpakuto couldn't protect low-ranked Shinigami fresh out of the Academy from so many enemies at once.

She was stubborn and pathetic. Scared of the judgmental stares that she would receive from her fellow Squad Members who witnessed the release.

_Won't they hate you more if these Shinigami die.. Won't you hate yourself, Yuzu-chan? _She knew the voice was correct – If she let them all die here, she would be hated, but the words were lost to her, those three words that could unlock her powers, save her comrades, gain her glory.

Yuzu had never been someone to fight, never someone for confrontation. She had never experienced this distorting feeling before, the painful twist in her gut that made her glare, gnash her teeth and wish to stomp something into the ground – Not until this moment.

Those mindless beasts threw away her comrades, those entrusted to her care as if they were spoiled children, bored of a new toy that they had received only hours ago. She was so aware of the suffering of others, every crack, slash, splat was amplified to her knowing mind.

_Yuzu-chan! _Yelled the usually calm voice of Tsuiho, _Call us! Call us now, or everyone will die.. It will be your fault! _The accusation stung Yuzu painfully; she felt pressure behind her eyes and transparent, salty drops forming in her eyes' corners. She was told when she started at the Shin'o Academy that her Zanpakuto knew more than anyone could about you, she knew at this moment they were right on the mark.

She surveyed the area slowly, cringing and grimacing at the sight of the Sixth Division Shinigamis' bodies littering the ground. Some created their own crevices in which they lay, unconscious, battered and bruised. Only herself and a few others remained, they didn't look her way, she hoped they didn't. She was a coward!

Seeing all of the pain that was caused crushed her soul, compressing her very being into a small box that only had one exit, she realized this, only a few people would see, it was worth it: "Okay," she whispered to her nagging weapon.

_Good, Yuzu-chan! Forget what they think, I'll always believe in you.. _despite the circumstances, Yuzu smiled slightly, such encouraging words spoke to her clearer than any other persons' words could – The warmth spreading through her spurred her on.

Both her hands connected to hold tightly onto the yellow and dark-violet hilt of her sword, she faced it towards the horde of enemies and her tussled bangs shadowed over her mahogany eyes: "Blend, Tsuiho Raito*!" she called, angered. Determination shone in her shrouded eyes and she felt her sword splitting into their respective hands.

Sinister chains clung onto her right wrist, while a gold-plated bracer enclosed on her other. Dual blades that were visibly opposites were held onto in their designated hands. A fight between light and shadow overtook her sight, before she could again see the horrific surroundings – she flipped her fringe away from her eyes and the hollows seem to show blatant fear. From experience, she knew that her usually brown orbs became heterochromatic, one was a gleaming yellow, radiant with purity and innocence, the other shaded, ebony-black and frightening.

Short swords made not of any earthly metal were clutched tightly into her thin fingers, both so very different from each other. When you looked to her right, you would feel as if you were looking into the burning flames of hell – Raging orange flames, intertwined with shadowy-purple, the sharp tips colored in ebony-black, matching her right eye. To her left, righteous energy jutted out from the heavy bright yellow hilt and guard, pulsating as if it was a living paladin's soul.

_Inflict the pain that they had caused to you and your comrades, Yuzu! _Commanded a new voice. It was male, deep and malevolent – It sounded as though it cackled evilly at the feeling of hatred she locked within herself. _Say it, unlock my dark power to do your bidding! _The demand shot through her senses like electricity and she nodded obediently.

The seemingly evil sword was pushed infront of her, aimed at the now slightly-quivering army of hollows. They stepped back; they were trying to escape her. She could hear the man's presence darken further and a comment about even idiot brutes such as them knowing when to truly fear their deaths, "Nukishimi no Gurippu*!" she screamed at them with vigor.

That command seemed to be like oxygen to an open fire. Magnifying itself, she watches in awe as it stretches out from her grasp and turns into something akin to a rope. Her hand lets loose, going through elegant and swift strokes. The sinister rope wrapped itself around four hollows that stood too close together for their own goods, extending further to wrap around them twice, then three times, four, five, on it went. Tightening its hold, they roared in pain, trying to no avail to escape their constricting bonds.

_Snap! _The sound resounded throughout the area and she looked away, flicking some of the tears she had shed to the side, she hated them, loathed them, couldn't stand that such monsters existed, but she was still Yuzu Kurosaki – Sweet, innocent, kind, loving.

She snapped herself out of the thoughts of not wanting to witness their demises. Yes, fighting was never meant to be in her grasp, or her sight. She was never meant to be anyone who would settle things in battle, but this was who she HAD to be. She had people to protect and she would do so gladly – _Just like Onii-chan and Karin-chan. _She thought determinedly, whipping her head back around.

There were five more to go; the trainees had helped each other in teams of six, taking down only a few of the hollows. She would definitely show no mercy, it was time for her brilliant and golden blade to take centre stage – Thrust into the air, she nodded at it absentmindedly before focusing on her targets, this attack had the perfect amount of charges to finish them off: "Seigi no Shesseki*!" she yelled, demanded of her Zanpakuto and it complied instantly.

She slashed infront of her over and over, thin blades like giant, yellow leaves made of blinding light sliced through the air and charged themselves up with the momentum of their trip – They cut into the grotesque flesh of their user's enemies as if it was melted butter and agonizingly rested in their middles, burning them from the inside with the energy.

She felt relief wash over her as she saw the last of the violent creatures falling to their knees and scattering into the cold wind as ashes, their charred remains quickly deteriorating after their deaths. She fell to her knees, exhausted, panting and sucking in oxygen greedily - clutching hold of her blades. She flicked them diagonally, side-by-side, her wrists connecting, it seemed to cause a reaction when the malevolent chains made contact with the holy plate encasing her small wrist. A moment passed and she was yet again holding her extended Kitana by its gold and black hilt.

She let out a long, drawn-out sigh and stood again, her knees buckling slightly at first, the supporting structure of her feet and shins seemed numb for an instant before regaining their own composure to steady her. She sheathed Tsuiho and her chest heaved once more, she still seemed desperate to keep her heart steady, she had never seen so much blood in her life. When she looked around, she noticed the few that were standing when she released her Shikai were unconscious aswell – She found this strange since she made it a point to kill the ones nearest to them before they could cause anymore injury – The truth was, they had fainted from her sudden burst of reiatsu.

Physically shaking her head, hoping to expel the negative thoughts, she realized she had to get them out of here, to the Fourth Division – But how? They were in the outskirts of the farthest Rukongai District. Then she felt it..

The oh-so familiar reiatsu that she had become accustomed to sensing whenever she sat at her desk, feverishly taking down notes, signing and documenting everything that was needed from a Lieutenant, it always accompanied the silence between the two people sitting in their designated places.

Captain Byakuya Kuchiki had been watching her – For how long, she had no idea. She secretly prayed he had not seen her Shikai release, for she had no idea what he would think. Luck wasn't on her side, but she wouldn't know this for some time, he knew her secret..

The very being in question stood, leaning nonchalantly against a wall. Some might say he was being heartless, the truth was when his Lieutenant slightly surprised him with her boost in power, he was preparing to jump in and use Senbonzakura to eliminate the threat, but she had beat him to it.

_So that's her Zanpakuto's true power, _he thought to himself, curiously, _I find her strangely intriguing – I'll have to keep my eye on this one._

* * *

_***Tsuiho Raito**: Banished Light - This Zanpakuto is based off of Yuzu's demise in Hell. I see her character as someone pure, innocent, kind, etc. So that's where the Light comes from, but since she died in hell, she is technically counted as a Sinner, hence the darker side. The darker side of it is not __necessarily evil, though he does say some weird shit sometimes - He's going to be the one hellbent on protecting her (Excuse the play on words xD)_

_***Nukishimi no Gurippu**: Hatred's Grip - The darker side's suited ability. As seen, it wraps around targets within a certain amount of yards from each other and tightens. I plan for the period of this tightening to be 10 seconds and it is more effective the more reiatsu used._

**_*Seigi no__ Shesseki_**_: Righteous Reprimand - Of course, the designated shikai release for the brilliant and radiant Light side. I guess, it's sort of like Getsuga Tenshou, though it shoots thinner attacks. It has five charges and the idea behind it is that it rests in the opponents body, burning them. I thought about how the Light punishes people for sins, so why not reprimand them with pain? :D _

_I have made an ability that will require the two opposites to come together, which will be featured later on in the story c: Until next tiiiime~_


	2. Wake up, Yuzu

_Now - This Chapter's a little boring, sorry. And I know, I might be rushing the feeling development a little, but sue me P: Also, this is where that overprotective Ichi-nii that I love so much makes an appearance :D Byakuya coming in to give Yuzu work, how sweet . QQ Read some romance novels, Kuchiki-taicho!_

_~Enjooooyyy_

* * *

Yuzu's eyes slowly opened to a squint, greeted by the blinding rays of the new day Sun and she sighed, before noticing the prominent color of orange in her peripheral vision: "Onii-chan?" she asked the quiet atmosphere, rubbing the sleep from her eyes with her hand to better focus.

The carrot-top was startled by the sudden and meek call from his baby Sister, he looked down at her with a worried expression and frowned slightly when she made sounds of discomfort upon trying to sit up, "Try to relax, Yuzu – Are you okay?" he asked, anyone could see or hear that he was concerned beyond belief.

"I'm fine, Onii-chan," she said, a weak smile on her delicate features, as she stared up at him, attempting to show reassurance in her deep brown eyes, "But how did I get here?" she asked confusedly, her expression changing to that of a perplexed nature.

"You don't remember what happened?" he inquired back to her, not answering her question yet. He seemed even more upset over her forgetful behavior.

She shook her head, indicating 'no' before looking at him quizzically, her undivided attention fixed on him, as she made another attempt to sit up, only to be lightly pushed down by the flat of her big Brother's large hand on the shoulder closest to him, "I only remember fighting the hollows," she added truthfully.

He scratched the back of his head – He asked the others that were there what happened, the ones who were awake anyway, but the few that fit into such a category claimed to have been knocked out by a powerful amount of reiatsu being released instantaneously in their surroundings, "I couldn't find out what happened while you were gone, but that jerk of a Captain you have said you fainted and you were taken to the Fourth Division," he laughed shakily before continuing: "I was in a bit of a trance, to be honest – I heard you had fainted on a mission and I rushed over there, only to find you in the best condition of them all," he explained further.

This time, Yuzu managed to prop herself up into a sitting position without any more difficulty than a few aching bones in her spine, must've been from the fall – She also had a mysterious headache, fighting with her unsealed Zanpakuto for so long had drained her stamina, and then she had used a large amount of her energy handling Tsuiho Raito, "Thank you for worrying about me, Onii-chan," she said sweetly, but also looking guiltily at him, "I'm also sorry for causing you concern," she apologized, looking slightly dejected.

"As long as you're okay, it doesn't matter," he said with a caring tone. He received a smile, as he always had when he acted like this – Karin had never accepted nor liked his overprotective nature but Yuzu thought that he was the perfect big Brother and no one could ever replace him in her eyes.

Without warning, Yuzu wrapped her arms around her brother's torso and rested her head on his chest, since he was so much taller than her: "I'm really glad I have such a nice big Brother like you, Onii-chan," she said enthusiastically, smiling widely in gratitude.

Ichigo patted his Sister's head affectionately and gave a slight smirk as he looked down at her. Even though she had apparently just slaughtered several large hollows, she was still the same, honest and selfless Yuzu he had always known.

Interrupting the endearing sibling bonding moment was an assailing knock on the shoji doors to Yuzu's Lieutenants Quarters, "Come in," she called in a welcomingly sweet voice and untangled herself from Ichigo, setting herself back onto her mint green futon.

The orange-haired Shinigami growled under his breath and glared fiercely at the newcomer after seeing who it was.

Byakuya Kuchiki, Captain of the Sixth Division looked out at the pair with his usual cold and distant demeanor, his stare wasn't anything intimidating exactly, though it still sent chills up most peoples' spines – Curiously, it had never been the case when it came to Yuzu, "I thought I should come by and inform you that you have many admittance papers to fill out for the injured Shinigami," he said coolly, he knew it was considered rude to just pile work on someone who was sick, but to admit that he was slightly worried about her would seem unsavory for someone of his caliber.

Yuzu bowed her head slightly to show respect and her understanding of the message, giving him a light-hearted smile as if she was thankful for him going out of his way to warn her of an incoming workload, "Arigatou, Kuchiki-taicho," she said genuinely.

"Hn," he replied, seeming to be bored of their company already. He was about to turn and leave when he was stopped by a deep growl coming from the oldest Kurosaki.

"Hey," grumbled Ichigo lowly, his bright hair slightly covering his angered stare, "What the hell's that?" he asked, he tried to control his temper around his youngest Sister since he was aware of the fear it caused her but this was too much: "She just got out of the Fourth Division and you're coming by and telling her about some paperwork she has to do?!" he barked sharply.

Byakuya acknowledged him with an expressionless look that could be described as utter and unmistakable boredom, "It is of no concern to you, Ichigo Kurosaki," he noted with slight disdain, though his deep voice bellowed in its usual monotonous fashion.

The protective older Brother stood up with a huff, "No concern to me?! That's my little sister, you arrogan- " he was cut off by a small hand holding a fistful of his lengthy, white haori before he could take a step forward.

Yuzu watched as his furious gaze softened gradually, when he looked down at her, who was clutching onto a bundle of his Captain's haori, trying to stop him in his tracks, "Onii-chan," she reprimanded softly. Ever since Ichigo could remember, Yuzu had been the one to scold him with her sweet, caring voice and bring him out of his darker moods.

"Hmph," Ichigo huffed in reply, his shoulders becoming slack and shrugging off the charged atmosphere coming off the two, he gave Byakuya one last glare before taking his seat beside his little Sister again.

The youngest of the trio could sense that the two weren't going to get along well ever, so she smiled sweetly at her Captain, "Ah, Kuchiki-taicho – Arigatou again for telling me about the work," for this she got a curt nod, "I'll see you at the Barracks later and I won't miss a single piece of work," she answered determinedly.

Nothing changed in his face, nor his posture, but the thought of her being so fragile and empathetic, yet recovering so quickly after battling so many hollows and seeing her comrades badly injured simply because she would be of assistance to someone else was surprising, to say the least, "Farewell then," he answered, giving a sharp nod to acknowledge his departure and stepping out, sliding the shoji doors shut behind him.

"Finally," Ichigo sighed, relieved. He didn't like the idea of that guy being around his Sister, it gave him a bad feeling, like brotherly instinct. He's heard a lot about him being one of the most sought after bachelors in the Soul Society, though none dare approach him with the proposal of companionship since he's apparently so scary, "You don't like that guy, do you, Yuzu?" he asked, his face was serious, not a trace of humor.

"Kuchiki-taicho? He's not so bad, I like his company – Sometimes it's a refreshing change of pace from the usual loud members of our Squad," she explained, but then she noticed the rage contorting her big Brother's face and realized what he had meant by the sudden inquiry, her cheeks were dusted with a light, hot pink blush upon figuring it out, "Oh! You mean.. like that – No, no! He's just my Captain, Onii-chan," she said, she chuckled nervously and waved her hands defensively.

It wasn't a convincing act at all, but Ichigo seemed satisfied, "Okay, good," he said, he let a toothy grin accompany his words – It wasn't yet known if he didn't want to push incase he upset her or if he hoped that it was not true so much that her words seemed mildly convincing.

"I should get up now, Onii-chan," she told him after a few moments of silence, "Kuchiki-taicho doesn't appreciate people slacking off during the day, so I should get going," she explained, before launching herself up energetically and disregarding her pain.

Ichigo looked slightly distressed for a moment but then gave a grin and said, "Fine, but if he touches you, I'll rip his arm off," he said as he walked out, giving a quick wave to her behind him. She looked at his back, baffled by his words but then continued cleaning up, before retreating to the bathroom to freshen up.


	3. My Sweet, Yu-chan!

_Hey guys, I'll be introducing our wacky and eccentric Antagonist today. No, it's not anyone from the series, he's an OC, of course! He's kind of a weird one, flirtatious and over familiar - How fun! He'll be shown more and more as I go on, but for now he might only be there during the end of the Chapters monitoring Yu-chaaan~!_

* * *

"I'm sorry for being late, Kuchiki-taicho," Yuzu said hastily, bowing to her superior in respect and scurrying over to her desk, not expecting to be given much acknowledgement.

"You were injured, so I will make an exception," he said in his neutral, deep voice. Looking up for only a second and finding himself impressed as he sees her practically pressing her nose against the desk in concentration and expertly gliding over the paper with her black-ink pen.

She was thankful for his reprieve and in return, focused solely on her paperwork – She skimmed over the paperwork – She masterfully danced the writing utensil over her page, signing with her looped and cursive letters where her signature was requested and putting reasons for hospitalization in the larger fields under the 'required' category.

She couldn't help the pang of regret and guilt that came with filling out such forms – Afterall, it was her hesitation that had caused so much pain to the Squad members, though as far as she knows, she's being revered as a hero. She shook away the negative thoughts and continued on with her work until she had been through the whole pile.

She coughed trying to clear her throat, "Kuchiki-taicho, I've completed all of the requested paperwork, are there any deliveries you need done?" she asked eagerly, after spending hours cooped up in here, not only did her hand hurt, she was going to go stir crazy soon enough.

"Hnn," he said, disinterest falling off his tone in waves, "I need you to take these," he gestured to a stack of documents, divided into folders, a small white label with designated Gotei 13 Divisions written in the Sixth Captain's tidy handwriting, "To go to the Division in which it says," he finished finally, pushing them towards her slightly.

"I will do that right now!" she said determinedly, scooping up the pile of folders and securing them in her hold, which took a few uneven shifting and awkward movements to keep them off the floor, "Sayonara, Kuchiki-taicho," she said as she ran out of the open shoji doors.

He looked up as she left, staring out at the door which once held her retreating figure and sighed. As of late, she had been coming to mind quite a lot and he had no way of explaining such a phenomenon, it couldn't be affection, of course not – Merely curiosity.

Part of him was indeed curious about the youngest Kurosaki, her Shikai was unlike anything he had ever experienced. He was sure he had not seen the full extent of the release yet but he did know where the dark half of her Zanpakuto came from.

_Hell_..

Images of the small, sandy brown-haired girl lying on the uncomfortable bed, her limp neck supported by a plump, white pillow and her once bright and beautiful chestnut eyes now staring into nothingness, lifeless just as the rest of her was. Her hands falling off the side of her resting place, skin turned pale and sinister chains protruding from her under-developed chest.

He could even picture the look of pure distress, concern and anger on her older Brother's face – This was the one time that he envied Kurosaki, though others may not feel that they'd like to experience such woe emotionally, he was envious of how the Ryoka boy had been so stricken and taken aback by the news of his Sister's death, where in his place, Byakuya had been the one to insist Rukia's execution.

A young, dare he think, attractive woman who braved hell, hollows, loss, grief and all negative emotions in between – Who held dear everyone she knew, forgave those who had wronged her beyond repair, empathized with those who are suffering, became a Shinigami purely to protect those who could not do it themselves, single-handedly holding a less-than-normal family together and tamed the berserker, Ichigo Kurosaki with a mere glance and utter of his title – truly an interesting female.

* * *

Yuzu skipped happily, the hem of her black Shihakusho swaying beneath her, tickling her ankles as she swiftly yet playfully made her way to the tenth division with the folders she was given – She began humming a tune to pass the time.

Five minutes passed and she made it to Hitsugaya-Taicho's office, whom he shared with his rambunctious Lieutenant, Matsumoto-fukutaicho, or Rangiku-san, as Yuzu would say. She knocked on the wooden frame of the shoji doors and slid them open upon hearing her invitation inside from the youngest Captain.

"Excuse me, 'Shiro-kun," Yuzu said happily, bowing slightly in respect and walking over to his desk, "Kuchiki-taicho has asked me to bring you this," she was smiling sweetly as always and he absentmindedly received the folder from her - He doesn't like to correct Karin's twin when she calls him 'Shiro-kun,' because he finds her mouth looks best when the corners are curved upwards. _I'm safer that way too.. _He added privately in his mind.

"Thanks," he mumbled as he scanned over the contents, "Tell Kuchiki-taicho I will have these completed by nightfall," he added as Yuzu turned to leave.

"Alright," she agreed, turning and waving at him kindly before shuffling back outside and shutting the sliding doors.

"Yuzu!" came a familiar voice. It was hoarser than most girls' voices but it was obviously a female's none-the-less, not just any female though.

"Karin-chan!" she called back, smiling widely at her Sister, as she ran at her in approach.

"What brings you to the Tenth?"

"Kuchiki-Taicho had some business with 'Shiro-kun,"

"Oo, Kuchiki-Taicho, huh?" it was obvious to Yuzu that her Sister was insinuating something just by the way she said those words, especially that gossipy sound at the start of her sentence.

Yuzu simply nodded, giving a thin smile to her Sister, "He's been very busy lately,"

"Has anything interesting happened to you lately?"

Yuzu bit her lip, she obviously hadn't heard, and she'd rather her not – If both her protective siblings caught wind of the incident, she'd be babied for the rest of her extensive life in the Soul Society, "No, not really – Just finished some paperwork and now I'm off to.." she checked the label on the top folder, "the Eleventh Division," she read out.

"Do you need me to go with you? Those guys are pretty crazy,"

"No, I'm fine, Karin-chan – I'm sure the third seat has work to do aswell," See? Babying her anyway. This is why she can't tell her about the hollows.

Karin grumbled lowly, she wanted to protect her Sister but part of her wanted a way out of her mountains of squad drill and hollow killing reports – Why do they have to be done by hand again? "Alright, alright. I'll see you then, Yuzu, be safe!"

"Bye, Karin-chan, I will," Yuzu assured with her sweet, kind smile as she continued her subtle skipping down the path to the Division's neighbor.

Yuzu pushed open the heavy, double doors made of oak and peeked through, noticing all the violence going on. At first, she was worried, what if someone got hurt? But by the laughter and the grins plastered on their faces, she figured they were having fun.

"Eto.." she started, though the nervous sound echoed off the walls, causing it to sound like an intercom, calling forth everyone's attention, she shifted nervously as she was stared at intensely by the primarily male population of the Squad, "Could any of you tell me where Zaraki-Taicho is, at this time?" she asked awkwardly, shifting from one foot to the other.

No one answered, they just continued ogling at her like there was no tomorrow. How could they not though? Suddenly, someone from outside their Squad comes into their training hall, looking like that.

Parted, sandy-brown bangs that had more hair covering over her left eye, leading down to long, flowing locks that cascade over her shoulders, stopping at her slim waist and curved hips – Her slender frame moving upwards to just over average-sized breasts, and standing at a reasonable height of around 5'8.

She bowed in apology, realizing she forgot something, "I'm sorry! I forgot to introduce myself – My name is Yuzu Kurosaki, but you can call me Yuzu-chan if you want, most people do – I'm the Lieutenant of the Sixth Division, nice to meet you," she said quickly, smiling sweetly at them – That was the killing blow, they were hooked.

None of them even minded that she was the baby Sister of the feared Ichigo Kurosaki, who was known to be extremely overprotective when it came to his two twin sisters. None of them even considered the other twin, she was too brash and rude, but this one was sweet and gentle, beautiful too!

A sound came from the back of Yuzu and she turned around to face what had everyone running back to their stations – A man about 3 heads taller than her was standing at the door with an adorable little pink haired child on his shoulder, she looked to be no older than 5 or 6 years old.

"Ano.. Zaraki-Taicho?" she asked with uncertainty, though she was beaming at him anyway. She didn't care how people looked, she was just a bit out of her element here, she had never visited this Division before, she got the feeling Byakuya didn't like to socialize with Kenpachi Zaraki all that much.

"Yes, what d'ya want?" he asked, rushing her to her point.

"I'm Yuzu Kurosaki and I've been sent here by Kuchiki-Taicho to give you this," she passed over the folders, "He didn't say when he wanted them finished, so please take your time, Zaraki-Taicho," she said softly, bowing her head in respect.

"Hm, thanks, kid," he said, snatching the enveloped documents from her swiftly, "Wait, did you say Kurosaki? Like, Ichigo Kurosaki?" he asked, he seemed to become excited. She thought she saw childlike wonder cross his formerly-scowling features.

"Ahh, yes, Taicho – That is my older Brother," she explained, she had relaxed a little more, so she was politely smiling at the rough Captain. He didn't seem so bad, he seemed to be fond of Onii-chan anyway.

"I see," he mumbled before walking away.

"Sayonara," she said, before leaving the way she had come, much to the Eleventh's Shinigamis' dismay. She closed the door securely behind her and took a deep breath in through her mouth, continuing her deliveries soon after.

* * *

"My poor Yu-chan! What is that cold monster doing to you? Oh, Yu-chaaaan, come to me, Yu-chan~" said a childish voice, chiding out orders that no one could hear. He seemed to be staring at multiple screens at once.

There were those that had a certain sandy-brown haired girl walking throughout the divisions, one of Byakuya Kuchiki scribbling down his signature and notes, there was Karin-chan too, Toshiro, Ichigo. How suspicious..

He tapped at a keyboard and redirected the camera that seemed to be stalking Yuzu in her tracks, the viewer would gasp everytime she dropped a piece of paper because she was overflowing with deliveries, though he hadn't heard her complain once.

"That's what I love about you my lovely Yu-chan~" He sang, albeit off-key, "You never complain about harsh people and their manual labor – Such a delicate princess such as you, working like a dog – Oh, woe is me!~" he called, his hand resting on his forehead theatrically.


	4. Mysterious Newcomer?

Her wooden-sandaled feet shuffled along the stone-paved walkway, leading to the gate of the Twelfth Division where she could see worrying puffs of smoke coming from the back of the building.

It seemed that cherry blossoms were in bloom this time of year, they smelled and looked wonderful. She had always been hypnotized by the aroma of them, along with the Sakuras' unique blends of pink and white.

Cherry blossoms had never meant as much to her as they did now – She had felt a connection to them since she met her Captain, Byakuya Kuchiki – Sure, he was different from her. Stoic, noble, without many expressions and a little on the quiet side, but she thought they worked well together in the kind of, 'I'll-fill-where-you-lack-if-you-do-the-same' way.

Her mind sometimes wondered to dreams of him, he was such a magnificent creature; there was no doubt that many girls before her had noticed it. Though, he seemed to dissuade his attention from the female's glances, choosing a rational and logical lifestyle, over that crazed by emotions, such as affection – To this, Yuzu let out a disheveled sigh.

She would admit it only to herself that feelings for him had wormed their way into her waking thoughts. She was a level-headed young woman, she wasn't so naïve as to think that someone who had made an inner sanctum of his own within his calculating mind had ever wondered to the possibility of 'trying' his Lieutenant.

She had a clear picture of him in her mind though, the perfect man; orderly, yet relaxed, jet-black, short hair with tips that jutted out in different directions, the back adorned by white-as-snow clips, visibly showing his thoughts of how others perceived him – He simply did not care, and this looked great on him. A face of perfect symmetry wore what one would call a bored or disinterested mask at all times, grey eyes half-lidded (unless the matter concerned a bickering Ichigo Kurosaki), though it did not hide the abundant intelligence and perceptive nature behind them. A well-sculpted nose, religiously following a straight line down his leveled face, curving at the end and his thin, pampered lips of light pink.

His shihakusho had never one piece out of place, precisely ironed and sized to fit his lean, yet toned body perfectly, obi sash tied tightly and kept pressed down to avoid inconvenience – The flicked up collar of his Captain's haori, embroidered with expensive gold thread, creating a pattern of noble standard, which made him truly look akin to a prince, albeit a cold and unromantic one at that.

As she continued on in her daze, hoping in the back of her mind that there wouldn't be any surprise turns that would cause her to humiliate herself and run off to finish her mission, instead of leisurely strolling to her destination. Her Taicho had made it clear to her that the giant stack of documents had to be delivered to the Twelfth Division – "As much as I hate associating myself with that mad fiend, this must be done," he had said afterwards, shooing her away nonchalantly.

She didn't encounter any problems with bends or the curbs on her trip, but she did run into something hard – like a person? She gasped at her face firmly planting itself into something that was distinctly a male's chest and she felt the files slip from her hold.

She looked up; surprised to see a handsome Shinigami's face maybe two inches above her own, just a little shorter than her Captain. He was looking down at her and he had an almost intoxicating smile on his face, it was charming.

"Excuse me, but are you okay?" he asked her, he had feigned concern, since it wasn't everyday a beautiful fukutaicho walked right into him.

Yuzu blushed. _Oh no! _she thought to herself urgently. She took a big step back and bowed in apology, "Gome'nasai, I should've been watching where I was going," she blurted out, flustered, before gasping at the pieces of IMPORTANT paper that was about to board the wind away from her. She got down onto the ground, looking like she was groveling at the man's feet, but really, she was frantically trying to secure the paperwork.. _And my job, _she added, woefully.

"Let me help you," he said quickly, snapping out of his daze. He kneeled next to her and began collecting the papers surprisingly swiftly and efficiently, his arms moved almost like lightning, flashing here and there, and everywhere in order to help Yuzu.

"Thank you so much," she said, as she gathered up the unkempt collection of slightly crumpled paper into her arms, securing them back into their respective folders, or where she thought they went anyway, "I'm sorry, I caused you trouble.. twice now," she looked saddened, she really hated to be a bother.

"It's fine," he said, before taking more than half of her workload and shifting it in his arm until it found itself a comfortable position in their new carrier, "I'll help you – Where are you going?" he gave her that charming smile again, luminescent and pearly teeth shone, seeming to reflect the sun into her eyes.

She stared at him for a while, entranced, before laughing nervously, "The T-Twelfth Division," she stated, although she stuttered the tiniest bit while doing so.

"Alright then, let's go," he said, tugging at her unoccupied wrist, causing them to walk side-by-side at a brisk pace, "I'm Hakeno, by the way, Hakeno Kenshi, but my friends call me Ha-kun," he explained, giving a thin, yet polite smile.

She beamed up at him in return, making his heart flutter, "I'm Yuzu Kurosaki, my friends call me Yuzu-chan," she replied properly, nodding in greeting.

"You're from Squad Six, right?" he asked, though he obviously already knew the answer, "You're the Lieutenant under Byakuya Kuchiki,"

She nodded in affirmative, her smile wavering a bit, "What about you?" she asked in return.

"I'm not in any squad," he said relaxed, as if being a full-fledged Shinigami without a Division was normal.

"I see.." she said skeptically, giving him a quick side-glance. From looks, there seemed to literally be nothing wrong with him – Shining silver hair that fell over one, gleaming emerald eye. Nonchalant and relaxed posture, taken care of uniform, average sealed Katana Zanpakuto type, well-built.

She had some suspicion about him, but there was some kind of aura around him that comforted and calmed her senses – He sent a trustworthy vibe out to her and she couldn't help but comply with its wish to be believed.

"Looks like we're here," he said slightly saddened, slowly sliding the folders stacked on his pressured forearm on top of her own collection of the held documents, when she nodded, showing that she was ready to be handed them again.

"I guess this is goodbye," she said, beaming at him with a full teeth-bearing smile and waving a small goodbye, though it was more directed at the ground than him, since she was having trouble bringing it up without a repeat of the earlier incident.

"Farewell, my beautiful Yu-chan~!" he sang out to her in a sweet voice, his demeanor becoming frivolous and romantic, unlike the collected and somewhat chivalrous one he had shown only moments before – In return, he was awarded with a confused look – He quickly coughed and took a deep breath in, as if trying to retract the words from the atmosphere, "See you then, Yuzu-fukutaicho," he corrected promptly before turning away quickly.

_His beautiful Yu-chan?! _ Thought a spying, raven-haired Captain angrily. If anyone were to walk past him at this moment, they might be amazed to have seen the fleck of emotion burn intensely in his usually-cold, grey eyes.

* * *

_Byakuya was spying on Yuzu ;o And who's this Hakeno guy anyway, stealing his girl? ;) As always, I hope that you liked it - Review or don't, I don't mind c: Be nice to me though, I'm so fragile QQ.._


	5. Byakuya's Own Plot

_I read through this story and I realized, this is a little heavy, isn't it? ._. This won't be that funny, because I'm just not funny at all :C But I will tryyy~ In this chapter, Byakuya's going to show a bit more of a sneaky side ^_^_

_And again, Enjoyyyyyy~_

* * *

Byakuya was stuck on this dilemma, he didn't know why he cared, but he didn't care about that reason at the moment - He had one goal for the next week, just until he could gather a little information; Keep. Yuzu. Away. From. Hakeno-Weirdo.

He had remembered the rage that coiled inside his gut when he heard that _stranger _not only claim her as his own, but also call her by an over-familiar term that he had never heard ANYONE call her before - He didn't like that feeling, infact he'd go as far as to say he _hated_ it. The only logical thing to do would be to also hate the reason such a feeling existed.

He had a bad feeling about the guy - As much as he would deny it if confronted with such an accusation, he had hidden his reiatsu especially well that day and trailed her - No, he wasn't a creeper, he was just trying to keep her safe, finding a new fukutaicho after Renji on such short notice was tricky, so he'd rather not experience it again - _Yeah, that's the only reason. _He assured himself in his thoughts.

Then it hit him! The perfect way to keep her occupied for days on end: Why, squad trainings, of course - His lieutenant was a well-rounded individual - Taught Hakuda by the Goddess of Flash herself, Swordsmanship by that eccentric outcast, Kisuke Urahara, Kido and Healing from his own sister. Yep! She was the perfect teacher for the academy students.

He would fill out the paperwork right away!

* * *

**DAY ONE: HAKUDA**

When Byakuya had told her that she would be teaching classes for the next week, she was baffled, to say the least - She had been running errands here and there but he had never given her such a job. He had nonchalantly said, "You're going to fill in for the Academy Teachers this entire week," and waved off her questions with an imaginary hand.

After a while, the idea settled on her. She liked helping people, showing them how they can achieve their goals, if she knows how and getting better herself at the same time - Yes, Yuzu Kurosaki again saw the positive side of a usually-bothersome situation. Amazing..

She had donned a different attire for this subject; it was pretty much the Onmitsukido's garments, beside the secretive mask and long, baggy sleeves that bunched up at your wrist. She found this more comfortable when she was doing Hakuda, easier to move in, more liberating, as Yoruichi liked to say.

Her slender legs leaped off the ground with power, as she flipped backwards, delivering a devastating kick with the face of her ankle during the journey - She had prepared in her stance, explaining each step to the students just as the Goddess of Flash had done with her. Knees bent, eyes focused, arms ready to rotate as they hit the mid-air mark, and then push off - they were instructed to use their stronger leg at the front and cause slightly less damage with the slower limb.

It took the trainees a few tries before they could do even clumsy versions of it but she continued to instruct them with the utmost grace and patience no matter how many hours it took - Even if it took four.

After four grueling hours, she had let them take a quick, twenty minute break before announcing that they were to start again - She heard some quiet protest or moans of frustration but most were thankful that she was reasonable enough to give them some time off.

Punches were next. This time, the weaker one would come in first and then the practitioner would twist their entire body to power the strongest limb - Yoruichi had made comments about this being similar to the Arrancar's Espada system; each of the ten Espadas had their own Fraccions, merely pets to them, who would initiate an attack against the opponent, hoping to weaken them or even defeat them before their Master would go, available to use even more power against the adversary.

* * *

**Meanwhile, in the Kuchiki Manor..**

The Kuchiki heir was frustrated, no one else could see it, but he was. Who was this guy anyway? A ghost? Wait, he couldn't be, he would've been able to find him if he were!

He had asked his sources which belonged to most Noblemen to find information on this strange man who was placing himself where he didn't belong; beside Yuzu.

He had looked over every report. The only thing he got was that the guy was indeed a registered Shinigami. He looked at the ONE piece of paper that was filled up to half way, most of it being an apology and excuse from his useless sources.

His eyes narrowed as he read over it again, 'Hakeno Kenshi, Shinigami. Squad: Unknown, presumably none. Age: Not Available. Rank: Unseated (Assumed).' This guy was a total enigma, he read through the messy scrawl of his current subordinates in distaste;

_We regret to inform you, My Lord, that this man has eluded every single investigation set upon him. None of his information is known except for his name, that he is, infact, a shinigami and a picture that we've also attached - We've gotten this information straight from the directory of the Shinigami database,"_

He looked at the picture - It was definitely him. He had that _stupid grin _on his face again, the one he showed to Yuzu continuously through their conversations. He had that same silver hair, it reminded him of Captains Ukitake and Hitsugaya's hair. He had verdant orbs that glowed _creepily _to Byakuya's _perceptive _eyesight.

* * *

**DAY TWO AND THREE: SWORDSMANSHIP**

Beforehand, Yuzu found it necessary to inform them that she wasn't a very experienced teacher and that she hoped they would go easy on her - Her kind and gentle nature was well-received by the at-first skeptical girls, who soon found her to be a relatable and intelligent teacher. The boys just gaped at her when she walked in and ogled at her radiant beauty.

She clutched her sword tightly, thrusting forward in a stabbing motion - Moving her right foot forward swiftly and following suit with her hips and shoulders, driving the wooden training utensil right through the air harshly, causing an invisible vortex to slightly upset her bangs' maintained balance.

The others followed her lead and found her teachings to be without a single fault. She was gentle, patient and kind with a good sense of humor, constantly lightening the mood with jokes albeit quite dry. She would guide them through step by step if they didn't understand and they found themselves learning all she had to teach them in no time.

Slicing down through the air in a speedy move, she could've cut someone in half, or maybe just cause a large, mortal gash to appear across their torso. Her arms rotated around in a circle, the first few strokes supposed to be a protection while you readied yourself for attack - Her hands turned themselves around on the hilt like she was handling a motorcycle's gear changing, before her whole upper body bowed and bent with the attack, bringing down extra momentum.

Again, she showed them over and over until they somewhat understood, encouraging them to practice on their own. The next day would be the time for her to get them into pairs so they can show her their adaptability in slow-paced battle. They would need to be ready if they were to be Soul Reapers, this she knew all too well..

* * *

**In some disclosed location name..**

"Look, little brother! Look what that cold meanie is doing to my poor Yu-chan~" he pointed accusingly at the screen, showing Yuzu perfectly content and happy, energetically jumping from one student to the next and beaming at them as they improved, "She shouldn't be doing that, princesses should never have to fight!"

"If you're so eager to have her, Nii-sama - Why do you not just take her?" he asked, he was genuinely confused by his older sibling's strange habits of just sitting back patiently and waiting.

"The time will be soon," the man who had just complained like a child said in a serious, calm tone. His hands clasped together, covering his mouth, as his eyebrows knitted together, as if he was contemplating something difficult to understand, "There is only a few more weeks before she becomes mine," he said, smirking deviously while his gaze was fixed on a video of a heavily-pregnant brunette, being fussed over by an orange-haired, seemingly Captain. _He will be my biggest obstacle.._

* * *

**Meanwhile, while I was stalking Byakuya Kuchiki..**

He had done it, done what his idiotic sources could not - He found a lead. It wasn't long until he noticed the pattern of the man leaving every evening, late at night, when he was still up practicing his elegant calligraphy strokes on expensive, rice paper.

He saw the way he went, straight into Rukongai. He wondered immediately why a Shinigami would go there at such a late hour in the dark, especially since there were very nice, commendable living Quarters situated in the Barracks of their respective Divisions. But then, he remembered that he could possibly not have a Squad of his own.

He felt so ashamed of himself and his pride was dying inside his proud, pushed-out chest. He clung to the shadows, even though it was dark and hid his reiatsu, but the guy stopped so much, he was worried he'd be caught.

He saw him enter the worst of all the Rukongai and continue to the outskirts. Suspicious.. Isn't that where Yuzu and the team was attacked? He'd have to look further into this later, but for now he had to go home and note down what he'd found..

* * *

**DAY FOUR: KIDO**

Yuzu personally really enjoyed Kido, herself and Rukia used to spend hours in the backyard, blowing up Ichigo's useless junk from his room, or so Rukia had said. He had been rather furious with Sode no Shirayuki's wielder when he had discovered his things missing, though he had never said anything about it being wrong to Yuzu before.

"Hado, #31: Shakkaho!" the air cracked around her palm dangerously, as sparks began to fly off the powerful, red sphere of reishi that she released, pushing forth at the target dummies infront of her. Kido wasn't her best subject, but she could teach a lesser class of first years easily, afterall her teacher was a Kido master herself.

Mimicking the words, the other students followed their teacher's examples, this class wasn't as good at picking up the tips and tricks of their Teacher's tutors - Their reiatsu control was clumsy and unstable, at best - Their attacks had caused more damage to their hairstyles than the offending target dummies spread out infront of them.

This time, she thought that they might be better at defensive, rather than offensive. She tried a simple one this time: "Bakudo, #1: Sai!" she called, the poor guy who had been afflicted had simply been pressured by his fellow students to do it, seeing as he was the most unstable with reiatsu, thus the most expendable, but of course, Yuzu just saw him as an eager soul ready to learn.

The boy, whose name was apparently Ginta struggled against his invisible bonds and squirmed across the ground, much to the other's amusement, "This is something that was used on my Brother when I was younger," she said, calmly walking around the wriggling bundle, "He had actually been able to break the bonds, but it takes alot of pain and effort, so I will release you instead," she said softly, smiling down at him before her hand lifted, as did the Bakudo spell, "The female shinigami who used it on my Brother all those years ago, actually taught Kido to me," her smile widened in fondness of their fun training memories.

They all giggled and laughed as she shared the stories of her and Rukia's training sessions, about how angry her Onii-chan used to get, purposely adding his name so that they might tease him later, if they had the guts. After a while, she had smiled politely at them, treating them as her equals, and advised them to practice, practice, and practice even more until they could use it on her Onii-chan better than Rukia.

* * *

**THE FINAL DAY: HEALING KIDO (KAIDO)**

This one was the simplest of all in Yuzu's mind, aslong as these first years learned that they needed adequate first-aid to go into the field, it was fine. Rukia had also taught her this, her knowledge also only being of mild expanse.

She gave them the advice passed down from her former teacher, just as she had with every class yet, she found this the best way to cope with the overflow of new and exciting things happening in her life - Remember their words.

"Unlike Kido, this reiatsu must be channeled gently through to the palms of your hands," she showed them the smooth flats of her hands and told them to pay close attention - She purposely made it almost impossible not to sense her reishi in the room and slowly churned the energy from her power's core, through her slender arms and finally to her padded fingertips, where they glowed with bright intensity a soothing, light green color.

The students reacted well to the lesson, finding themselves easily imitating their teachers movements and putting the effort in to work on it. Like many of those from her offensive/defensive kido class, there were some who were unintentionally causing trouble for Yuzu and the others - Their healing came out as crazed, electrical currents and the calm leaf green had become a swamp sludge-like color and there was some sparks that flew from their fingertips, shocking them slightly on the way.

She had reassured them as she always had when people had a hard time - She looked to the more optimistic side of things and they seemed to love her for it - "If someone ever needed to be resuscitated, your Kaido would definitely be helpful in speeding up their pulse, so that they can breath easier," she had said sweetly, holding their conducting hands in her own gingerly.

* * *

_Aaaaand done! I feel like I've bored you with this, so I'm sorry if I was right, I'm just really trying to fill up some time. Only a little while longer.. Also, who was the heavily pregnant woman? You'll probably find out next chapter, or maybe the one after that xD_


	6. The First Move

"I'm so _e_xcited, brother! Yu-chan is almost miiiine~!" chimed an ecstatic and slightly high-pitched voice, though it belonged to a male - Said male was currently sitting in a high-back, leather chair - His shaded eyes were taking in the image of two adult shinigami. One had unique and eye-catching orange hair, the other had shoulder-length hair of a dark-brown hue.

The brunette was heavily pregnant with, by the way he fussed over every need or utterance, the tall carrot-top man's child. He ran from one end of the room to the next, from what was heard, he was 'keeping watch'.

A resounding cough echoed off the secluded room, "Nii-sama - I still see not why you must wait for this," he sounded disappointed, or impatient - His pale blue eyes flicked towards the screen that had stolen his Brother's attention.

"You've never understood my plans," the cheerful spectator replied sadly, giving his 'brother' a quick glance before returning his intense stare to the screen to his right, "If I didn't wait, there would be too much complications," he said after a few moments, clasping his hands and twirling his thumbs around each other.

The questioning other sighed exasperated, "You could've simply spent all your free-time coming up with a way in which we didn't have to sit in this gloomy place for months, but instead you spent all your time writing this stupid novel," he glowered, waving a thick, script around infront of him.

"It's not stupid!" he barked fiercely, his anger fixating on his companion - The other was taken aback by the outburst, his eyes widening suddenly from the shock - It wasn't everyday this man became so infuriated. He coughed, recomposing himself, "When you fall in love, you'll understand, my impudent little brother," there was still a slight growl in his voice, but his outrage was dissipating gradually.

* * *

"Ichigo, sit down already!" insisted the hobbling brunette, shuffling herself over to where the lean Captain stood, watching vigilantly out the window, in attempts to keep his family safe.

"I can't - Unohana said there were only a few days left," he replied determinedly, "This is when they'll be after you!" he said through gritted teeth - All threw the pregnancy he had been like this, paranoid and mistrusting. He wouldn't even let Rukia or Orihime visit sometimes.

"Ichigo Kurosaki!" she yelled angrily. She had never been one to succumb to anger, but between the messed-up hormones and her husband acting like a cage, she was down to her last nerve.

He gulped and turned around, looking into her deep, emerald orbs, "Yes, honey?" he asked, fully intending to dissuade her from the furious mood she was in, as if that would work.

"Don't 'Yes, honey?' me, I'm a grown woman!" she blew up. What was with him and Karin babying people close to them? "Sit the hell down and do your work right now, and I don't want you looking out of that window until I say it's okay!" she roared, usually so level-headed, sarcastic and humorous, her pregnancy had really screwed with her.

"Y-yes, Ma'am," he stumbled over his words, nervously walking under her intense glare to his desk that he had requested be moved to his Quarters, claiming it was not so he could keep an eye on his child-bearing Wife.

She sighed, calmed down now and relieved. Sometimes, being like this with Ichigo was the only thing to get him out of his overprotective, 'nothing-matters-as-long-as-I-can-keep-an-eye-on-y ou' mindset - Like all Kurosakis before him, he was stubborn, "I'm very sorry for yelling at you, but you were being completely unreasonable," she apologized softly, putting a reassuring hand on his shoulder.

"That's okay, Reika," he replied, he wasn't paying much attention to his work - He was never good at filing these reports, he was a man of action, after all - He just didn't want to face Reika's wrath twice in the same day.

* * *

**TWO DAYS LATER..**

"Yuzu-chan," a silver-haired Shinigami walked up to her desk, fully ignoring the hateful stare that assailed him from the direction of a certain Captain, "I was hoping that you'd come out with me tonight," he said calmly, flashing her that same charming smile, or the creepy one in Byakuya's keen eyes. The visitor's hands rested comfortably on either side of Yuzu's desk.

She looked up at him and beamed sweetly, "Oh! Ha-kun!" she greeted him happily, "I would love too, but-" she was cut off by him straightening and bowing his head in farewell.

"Great, I will see you later tonight then!" he said uncharacteristically excited, all but skipping out of her office in merriment.

Byakuya let out an almost silent growl that reverberated through his throat. _Him again, _he thought angrily, looking in the perplexed girl's direction, almost displaying a red irritation mark over his hair-covered temple.

* * *

"Ha-kun, thank you so much for taking me out today, I've had alot of work to do lately," she thanked him nicely, giving him a thin, curved smile. The different colored lights on the dancefloor flashing through her enchanting brown eyes.

"My pleasure," he returned in a cool voice, his hand was lingering dangerously close to hers, though she seemed too caught up in seeing the talent.

"A bottle of Sake and a lemonade for the lady," a charismatic waiter said, winking one of his pale blue eyes at Hakeno. Yuzu noticed this and looked at her 'date' in a quizzical manner.

"Do you know him?" she asked as the boy who was slightly younger looking than them both sashayed towards the next table of people, trying to look as care-free as possible.

"Oh, him?" he asked, rhetorical of course. "No, I've actually never met him before, he probably winked at me because I'm with such a beauty," he flattered her, hoping to get her away from the subject. Such a smooth liar..

The desired result was achieved, she denied it profusely, her modesty taking over and almost all the way to her ears turned a deep crimson. "Thank you though," she finally said, giving him a shy smile.

"I'm simply telling you the truth," he continued on, her blush reddened further, if ever that was possible and if you could see passed her long, tangle-free locks, you might've been able to confront her about it having reached her ears this time, "Cheers!" he said out of the blue, holding his cup filled with Sake in the air towards her and watching expectantly.

She clumsily and awkwardly answered the gesture, picking up her own glass and clinking it with his own one in waiting with a shaky smile. She definitely found him weird at that moment, he changed constantly, "Cheers," she mumbled half-heartedly, before taking a sip.

He followed her lead and put the tall glass' rim to his lips, taking a long drink of it, though he was really trying to hide his smirk.

Yuzu felt kind of dizzy and she couldn't explain it, she made it a point not to drink Sake because she didn't want to burden someone with her drunken self, but was there a problem with her order? She lurched forward, her palms smacking against the table in a desperate attempt to keep herself from falling onto it, face-first.

"Are you okay, Yuzu?" feigned concern again, just like the first time she met him. He got up and draped her flimsy left limb over his shoulder, his arm wrapped around her waist, while the other secured her arm's placement by clinging to her hand tightly, "I'll take you back to your quarters then," And with that, they both left the bar together.

* * *

_Hm. Don't know about this chapter either, but it's almost here, yes the ending xD! I'm a badly inspired writer so please be nice ;-;_


	7. Quality Time

_So, from the last Chapter, you see that the strange Haneko Kenshi has hobbled off with Yuzu in tow, under the pretense of taking her back to the Sixth Division Barracks. I hope you're enjoying the story thus far, but if you're not, why are you on Chapter 7 again? :P _

* * *

"You've finally done it, Nii-sama," the younger man said, flashing a devious smirk as he looked at the restricted Lieutenant. He patted the slightly taller companion of his on the shoulder as silent praise.

"Oh, yes, I know~" he chided happily, turning to him with a cheshire cat grin, before moving his hands in an ushering motion, as if telling the other to shoo, "Now, little brother - Please go, Me and my beautiful Yu-chan need some _quality time _togetherrrr~" he purred excitedly.

"Fine, fine, I'll be down the corridor, should you need my assistance," moments passed and there was soft, clacking footsteps on marble hall. The retreating figure took a brisk pace, knowing how his sibling's patience wavered when it came to his 'First and Only Love'.

In the meantime, a listening captive had awoken from her drug-induced slumber. Her aching head felt like it would split in half at any moment and her slim wrists burned the more she tried to move them, there was a slimy feeling creeping around them. She couldn't see a thing, everything was pitch black even when she had opened her mahogany eyes as wide as possible - To accompany her blindness, her tongue was dry and she tasted cloth, her ankles bonded with the same sludge as her wrists.

She let out muffled commands - In her mind, planning to say something like, "Let me out, please!" as politely as she could, but it came out as more like, "Mmm-muh-merr-mep-mmm!" as she struggled against the constricting cuffs - What was this stuff anyway?

"My adorable Yu-chan, you're awake at last," a smooth voice detached from a body called from nearby, if this was one of those romantic-comedy harem animes, she would expect such a tone to be used by a sliding teenage boy, a red rose trapped between his lips.

She continued to squirm and wriggle against the surprisingly comfortable chair that she was chained to by who-knows-what.

The benevolent man flashed the smile that _did _look creepy as he observed her physical protests, "You look absolutely perfect on your throne, My Queen," he whispered into her ear, as he leaned forward so that if he fell forward, his muscular shoulder would hit her right in the face.

She could sense the closeness of him, his warm breath that cascaded over her neck gave an unpleasant shiver as she continued both her distorted pleas and her battle against the sludge that held her to the 'Throne'.

He frowned sadly with a disappointed look in his eyes, "Please, stop struggling, Yu-chan - That isn't just some slime that I put around your wrists and ankles, it's something my own, genius brother concocted, it feeds off the reiatsu of those who try to escape it's hold. Wonderful, isn't it?" he puffed-out his chest as if he was proud.

Behind the dark blindfold, her eyes had widened in shock as she stopped her movements all together, the only one remaining being the rise and fall of her chest whilst she tried to continue breathing. She whimpered, it was the only thing close to a coherent sound she had made yet.

"You look so uncomfortable," he mumbled to himself, unbeknownst to her, but he had a regretful look on his face before his features perked up and he neared her once again, his hands moving behind her head, making her uneasy. "If I take these off, you'll be happier, right?" a nod was given in response.

When the knots were untied, she had to shut her eyes at first, it took a few moments before her brown orbs adjusted to the dim lighting. She looked at what she assumed to be her odd captor and gasps, looking him over, "Ha..-kun?" she stuttered out slowly, looking at him with an emotion that could be best described as blame - Accusation of betrayal.

"My Yu-chan remembered!" he celebrated with a large, dashing smile which wasn't nearly as handsome as it would've been in a normal situation, "I missed those beautiful, sparkling eyes of yours and I love that angelic voice when it says my name, Yu-chan," he confessed huskily.

"Why..?" she asked, she had such a hurt voice when she asked - He seemed oblivious to this, seeing only how beautiful she looked under the small amount of light provided by the lamp he had set next to her.

"Because, I love you, of course~" he sang to her, watching her possessively, "If I hadn't taken you, how would you be mine?" he asked, he truly seemed confused.

"I'm not someone's property," she whispered meekly, she had never had any reason to stand up for herself, people had always done so for her, but she was alone here, how could someone believe they would own her?

"He's the reason I can't let you go off by yourself anymore, Yu-chan," he growled, gritting his teeth and arching his eyebrows in a furious expression.

"Who are you talking about?" she asked him, she looked more befuddled than angry or hurt this time.

"Him! Him!" he insisted, expecting her to guess. His mood lowered when he saw she still had a quizzical expression, "That _Captain," _he spat out disrespectfully, "The nobleman, Byakuya Kuchiki - I know you've taken a liking to him, my Queen, but he doesn't see you like that, only I do," he whispered solemnly, cupping her chin between his strong fingers, stroking the smooth, ivory skin of her cheeks affectionately.

Out of instinct, she forcefully ripped her face from his hold and looked to the side, refusing to meet his adoring gaze, "If you loved me, you wouldn't treat me like this - This isn't how you're supposed to treat people you love," she explained sadly, her voice barely above a whisper as tears started to form in the corners of her lightless eyes.

"I do love you!" he roared aggressively, catching her attention. She heard a crash and noticed that he had struck at the nearest wall, which resulted in a gaping hole being formed, casting an even darker shadow over the already-dim room.

She looked back at him with an uncharacteristically fierce glare, "I have never even met you before!" she scolded him, looking directly into his eyes, which seemed to become darker.

"How could you forget..?" he asked, his tone was depressed, cold - "How could you forget when you're all I remembered?!" his control over his anger was being worn thin, he hadn't expected her to be so adamant to leave, his delusions of kidnap..

Frightened by his outburst, she stared him, dumbfounded, "W-what are you t-talking about?" she stuttered occasionally, trying to level her heart rate - His sudden outrage had pushed her pulse to go faster in urgency.

"You were only a little girl then," he began, pulling across a chair for himself and sitting infront of her with thoughtful eyes, "I was told by the Soul Reaper that sent me here, that I would forget everything about my former life - But when I came to, I still remembered you. You were actually the only thing I remembered, the girl obviously repulsed by the blood that was flowing out of me, still gave me a shaky smile, told me I'd be okay and gently bandaged my wound, even when you were told to leave me be by your Father," his look softened and for the first time, she felt like he was worthy of a second chance.

"I'm sorry," she whispered softly, "I don't remember anything but my family from when I was alive," she sounded genuinely rueful about her inevitable amnesia.

"Ah~ You're just as sweet as I dreamed about," he said, though his eyes showed deep regret and sadness, "As much as I was ecstatic about seeing you again, I spent months grieving over your death, despite not knowing anything about it,"

She couldn't help but feel flattered, though she still felt resentment over the trickery, "If we had met under different conditions, you would've had a better chance at being with me than this," she told him, her face was serious and humorless.

"But.. if I hadn't taken you, _he _would have!" he barked sharply at her, slamming his fist down onto the nearby table.

_His mood changes rapidly, I can't tell which one is really him.. _she thought to herself. "Allow me to leave and I will put this behind me," she said in a level tone, looking straight into his eyes. She seemed professional; as if she was making a business deal with a very _captivating _employer.

"I cannot." it was short, direct and just as serious as she had been mere moments ago, "I've spent a decade in this place, waiting for you, I wouldn't have even cared if you were old and frail when you had finally joined me in the afterlife - Why would I let you go?!" he broke down, his eyes seemed to madden with his sanity.

She was taken aback, "How long have you watched me?" her voice was soft now, though it didn't have any understanding in it whatsoever, when she had learned of the conditions to his demise, she had felt slightly drawn to him, but his sudden moods dissuaded her trust from him.

"Four years," he confessed without any real embarrassment or anything as such, he just sat there with that same look on his face - Perhaps, hoping she would see it as devotion and realize that he would stay by her side always, which he would.

"But.. I've only been in the Soul Society for four years," she said, she was frightened, paranoid - How did she never notice? Had he been orchestrating such a plan this whole time? Did she put her friends in danger unintentionally - "Did you do anything to hurt others in your pursuit to 'gain me'?" she asked, she was both curious and suspicious.

He froze.

* * *

_Okay, there's the end of the Chapter. So Hakeno = Creepy stalker guy ;o You guys probably realized that already. Oh, no! Yuzu's been captured, who will save her, I wonder? PSHT. Anyway, I hope you keep on reading :D Bye for nowww~ 3_


	8. Operation: Rescue Yuzu!

_Rescue mission, wooooo! So, this will be the last Chapter and if I feel it necessary, I might put in an epilogue. Prepare for not-so-awesome fight scenes in this one - Jealous Byakuya inc._

* * *

She had tried and tried to get him to admit to her that he had done something horrible, she knew he had just by the way he froze - Something that could make her resent him even more. Even when being kidnapped, she had tried to reason with him, reach out a gentle touch and give him a chance to redeem himself, but he hadn't taken it.

Instead, he had given her a weird, lopsided grin with an uneven stare and walked over to the nearby table, feeling around a bit, since she guessed his eyesight wasn't any better than hers in the dark - He walked back and in the small ray of light emitting from the lamp's bulb, she could discern the shape of something rectangular and thick, it had messy scrawl on it, so she assumed it to be a written report or something.

"I've been working on this every day since I first laid eyes on you, my beautiful Yu-chan," that was all he had said before taking the chair across from her and reading out loud. It turns out that it was an actually _well-written_ novel,albeit a little off in the sanity department.

Before he began, he theatrically described to her the basic plotline, she gulped, having the feeling they'd be there for a long time - He spoke of stalking someone like it was the most romantic thing in the world - The story revolved around two characters and there were three antagonists too. A lowly shinigami, presumably the author, pining after a beautiful and young Shinigami Lieutenant, meanwhile she's set her sights on an 'incorrigible monster wearing the skin of people' - A.k.a; Byakuya Kuchiki. The other 'antagonist' was a peculiarly overprotective and overzealous 'fake Shinigami' that pranced around in a Captain's haori and had orange hair, constantly 'hoarding' the beautiful 'damsel in distress' for himself and not allowing her to consult others, lastly there was the black-haired 'she-devil' named Sarin.

She had made a comment about him insulting her family, saying she disliked the way he spoke of them like they were the villains, meanwhile he has her tied to a chair by nothing less than leeches - He had simply ignored the indignation in her voice, smiled light-heartedly and waved it off with an imaginary hand as if what people say meant nothing to his 'intelligent mind'.

She had actually found it an increasingly good read and was listening intently, before she knew it, hours had passed and he had been through almost half the book - Woah, was he a fast reader. The author was overly-excited by her attention and the words fell from his mouth like a typhoon of dictionaries. She did think her character was too saint-like to be her, but he was right on the money when he wrote his character - Mood swings gallaw. Her eyebrow twitched every now and then when Karin was called a 'she-devil' and her Onii-chan was compared to something sinister and putrid, "It's not like that!" she had defended adamantly.

There was one character she didn't know much about, she didn't know who it was based on either - His supposedly loyal and calculating partner-in-crime who always stayed by his side, making himself like a sibling - _Maybe that voice I heard earlier.. _she pieced together.

* * *

Where was she? Where'd that bastard take Yuzu?! _Where could they be? _he thought frustratedly - He had witnessed him and her stumbling every which way down the dirt road, leading **outside of the Seireitei.**

He wasn't trailing her this time, he had actually been called out to Ukitake's estate for some reason when he saw them, his arms were wrapped securely around Yuzu, much to Byakuya's dismay. He had already accepted that he had less-than-innocent feelings for his Lieutenant. It was inevitable after all..

He had a duty to do, and he had no reason not to trust the man, except for a gut instinct that haunted him over and over, he had gone off to do whatever Ukitake wanted him to, which turned out to be him confessing that some of the Koi fish in his pond, actually belonged to him - So that's where they went! Damnit, Yachiru.

But today, when he had gone to his desk, he had expected her two hours after he arrived, as always since some might say he got up incredibly early. He waited and waited, gave her another two hours before he started to get suspicious - The Yuzu he knew would drag her body on only her elbows if her legs were incapacitated, which is one of the reasons he admired her so.

He had been feeling a certain connection to her as of late - Her reiatsu stood out more than anyone else's ever had to him before. He tried to zone in on it, as best as he could but there was only a faint pulse of her reishi in the whole area. Then he remembered when he had stalked the guy to the farthest Rukongai district before turning back, as to not appear to be visiting such a place.

His swift feet seemed to have a mind of their own, they even somehow activated Shunpo on their own. He was known for being quite fast, despite still not being able to beat Yoruichi in tag, and he made it to his destination in no time - As he thought, the faint trace of her spiritual pressure became somewhat brighter, though it felt like it had been dimmed by something. Thankfully, not at an alarming rate.

He felt like a tracking dog as he moved in his dignified manner throughout the poverty-stricken neighborhoods, occasionally lowering himself to speak to commoners, asking them if they had seen either of the pair, or even if they had seen both. The few pointers he had gotten proved to be dead-ends, but this latest one was actually helpful.

"I saw them walking towards the old Inn on the end of the street to our left," a helpful old woman had said with a smile on her aged features.

He desperately followed the directions and found himself infront of a ragged, old shack. He couldn't help but be disgusted that someone might be keeping _his _Yuzu in there as their captive. Who knew what he was doing to her..

* * *

Yuzu found herself becoming increasingly creeped out. He had pictures of her doing everything! LITERALLY EVERYTHING.

He held one up infront of her face, it was her during that one halloween when Rukia-nee had talked her into wearing the sailor-fuku that looked just like her Middle School uniform, it wasn't the highlight of her life, since Ichi-nii had punched maybe half a dozen guys in the face for looking up her short skirt. "It's one of my favorites," he said fondly, giving a thin smile.

She shivered at the blissful look on his face, it was worrying, to say the least. He had a whole pile to go and he had been showing them for an hour and a half already. There were pictures of her slaying hollows in the outer districts, trying to figure out how she should style her hair ("I liked the ponytail myself, but you look good anyway, my perfect Yu-chan~") there was pictures of her racing Reika for Onii-chan's attention, though the little Sister won every time, whether she was first or not; "If I untied you, would you run towards me too, my Queen?" Creepy! Yuzu had shook her head, even though she might've had a chance to escape if she had said yes.

Suddenly, his eyes had narrowed and her mind kind of went blank. She vaguely remembered him throwing the pictures to the floor and rushing towards her, both his hands steadying her face so that she wouldn't be able to shy away and then.. He kissed her. He forced his lips onto her own and to say he was forceful would be an understatement, it seemed he was trying to go as fast as possible. Yuzu just looked shocked, occasionally feeling burning on her ankles and wrists from trying to struggle away from him.

As if on cue, the large, wooden double-doors were promptly kicked into, sending splinters scattering over the marble-like floors - A furious looking Byakuya could be seen by the doorway, he watched in pure rage as Hakeno continued to force himself onto the restrained Lieutenant - The strange captor had sensed the familiar reiatsu of the Captain and had to speed up the 'Make-Yuzu-mine' step a little, sadly, this had been his death warrant.

Byakuya briskly walked over to the interlocked pair and took hold of the other man's collar, pulling him back and throwing him into the farthest wall for added effect, before looking at the red-faced Yuzu, "Are you okay?" he asked, the concern was evident in his eyes, even if his voice seemed to be the same.

She was in a daze though, all she gave was an affirmative nod - She couldn't believe that her distant Taicho had come to save her and he looked absolutely furious. She decided that she wouldn't hope for too much, just a little.

The angered Taicho in question wanted to get Yuzu out of there as quickly as possible, so he used his Zanpakuto to rid her of the constricting ooze that locked itself around her slim ankles and wrists, where rings of burnt skin marked each one. "Go," he said simply before facing the man. She hesitated for a moment, her Captain looked murderous, did she really want the man dead?

Her eyes settled on a picture. What was it? It looked so familiar. She went closer, ignoring all calls from either man and picked it up - She trembled as she saw what it truly was of - Her. A slim, five foot eight girl with waist length, sandy-brown hair that was swaying in the breeze to her right - Chains hung off her wrist, though the picture was taken from the side view, so you could only see one of the swords, she recognized it immediately - That was Tsuiho Raito and that was Her. Those were the hollows.. And those were her injured Squad members.

_I'm sure I'm not the only one thinking it.. _that same dark, malevolent voice echoed in her mind with suspicion, _That _**bastard **_sent those hollows are you - He caused all that damage. Don't even bother asking him, you know it's true - Just go, that Captain of yours will take care of him - The most important thing is that you're safe, _insisted the man's voice.

She had no time to be stubborn this time - She ran, ran away from everything and didn't stop until someone blocked her path, "Stop!" the shaded figure shouted, standing infront of her and a extended glint of steel could be seen - _Zanpakuto._

* * *

Byakuya was emitting a dangerous aura as he took hold of his Zanpakuto's hilt a little too firmly, pulling it from its sheath swiftly and showing an arrogant and cold facade to the opponent, gripping his sword tightly in his strongest hand and putting it forward, inviting the other to strike.

Haneko didn't hide his anger like Byakuya did - He had all but exploded when Yuzu escaped him because of this meddling Captain - To be honest, he hadn't made precautionary measures for the stoic man because he believed that Yuzu was little more than nothing to a nobleman. His own weapon was drawn and he had taken a unique fighting style which he had worked on alone, not even his Brother had helped him. The sword hovered over his shoulder, ready to cover his face if need be.

"You need to be taught that I do not tolerate others touching what is mine," Byakuya said coldly, shooting off a sharp glare, as he prepared to shunpo behind the other combatant.

"She's not yours!" Haneko insisted angrily, running towards him with his sword trailing back, clutched tightly in between his hands, so tightly that his knuckles had become white from the pressure. He slashed downwards, only for his momentum-clad strike to be stopped in it's tracks by a relaxed and rather frivolous wave of Senbonzakura.

"She **_is_ **mine," Byakuya pushed fiercely at their battling katanas, sending Haneko tumbling towards the wall.

* * *

The mysterious man didn't waste any time - He took his weapon and charged at Yuzu without any warning, besides an angry glare and muttered curse words. Thuds and crashes could be heard from the chamber that Yuzu had abandoned mere minutes before.

"Hey!" she yelled, scarcely escaping a severe gash to her torso, she used a Hakuda ability, falling back into a bridge formation and flinging her legs up to kick at her attacker's hands, causing him to lose focus on her, more determined to keep his hold on his sword now.

She jumped back, unsheathing Tsuiho without hesitation. She could feel that her hands trembled at the thought of actually having to kill another of her own kind, but she was soon woken up from such thoughts by a rather quick shunpo executed by the offending party. He was about to slice her head clean off her head when she, herself shunpoed away from his range, leaving him utterly dumbfounded.

_I have to get rid of that sword, he's too quick. _she thought strategically. She ran at him again, hoping for him to strike this time - And he did. A violent thrash of his sword-wielding arm right at her. She fell back onto her hands, being in a half hand-stand position, her slender legs locked around his arm and caged him in, gaining her a cut on her upper thigh - She cringed at this, but ignored the pain as she twisted his arm painfully, causing him to relinquish the weapon.

Success! To be fair, she sheathed her own blade after cautiously kicking her opponent's discarded weapon outside of the closed-in room, making it impossible for him to get it, lest he turn his back on her. _No, Yuzu-chan - You have to use us! _demanded the softer voice of Tsuiho.

* * *

Hakeno and Byakuya's blades met once more in a clash of power, though the Captain easily overpowered the outcast using only one hand. Still, the other was nimble, he got away with only a few tears in his clothing or a small slit across his cheek.

"Hado, #11: Tsuzuri Raiden," he said calmly, his grey eyes remaining half-lidded as he touched his two middle fingers onto his Zanpakuto's conducting metal surface.

Hakeno had always neglected to study Kido, so he was at a loss in this one - His brother was the true expert at that kind of stuff. What did he just do though?

Byakuya smirked at the baffled expression on the other's face, not a very well-learned man afterall. He just needed to get one cut - _I apologize for this, Senbonzakura, _he thought to his inner soul, gaining a warm feeling which usually meant he was forgiven - His Zanpakuto was one of the only souls in existence which he would ever show remorse towards._  
_

He thrust forward and catching his adversary on his toned deltoids, feeling satisfied when he felt the man's presence lighten and his body surge in accordance with the volts of electricity moving through him - Byakuya spread his hand out, palm flat out facing the almost-groveling opponent; "Hado, #33: Sokatsui!" he barked sharply, a blue sphere of his overbearing reiatsu gathering within his grasp - He shot it out, purposely only hitting the sword-wielding arm.

Upon contact, Hakeno's verdant orbs widened to an impossible expanse, and he tried to clutch his arm, though he only found thin air - He couldn't even scream, he was in such shock. Byakuya seemed to have added a few extra charges of his bountiful reishi into the attack, causing it to complete incinerate the man's right arm.

"As I said, I won't tolerate you touching what is mine,"

* * *

Her shihakusho was ripped in several places from her collisions with the wall, blood streamed from her mouth and her forehead, where a trail of the crimson liquid flowed freely over the left side of her determined face. She knew she couldn't afford to be stubborn anymore, fair or not, this was merely survival. She pulled out her weapon once again, much to her opponent's dismay; "Blend, Tsuiho Raito!" she demanded her Zanpakuto to aid her and it would happily do so.

As much as he hated it, he was scared - He was with his older Brother when he had taken the picture that had infuriated her so much because of the implications, he had seen the extent of her powers and being the calculating and overthinking individual he was, he fully believed that she had not yet used all of her power on him.

He was definitely right, almost immediately after, she glared at him with her heterochromatic-stricken eyes of charged opposites and crossed her dual blades over her black-clad chest, the chains swinging occasionally to touch the bracer, which caused a spark to erupt from it, never hurting their Master though; "Sohansuru Sengo-Koku*!"

He was awe-struck despite the situation he was in - Never before had he seen such harmony working within one person. The two seemingly opposites intertwined with each other, as if they belonged together. They weaved themselves through the gaps that the other left and soon formed a pole-arm of sorts. A shadow-purple blade that even had a certain blood-lusting gleam to it, a handle of light spread over the midsection of an extensive pole consisting of both light and shadow, twisting around each other - It seemed like it was a death wish to touch it, but the girl firmly gripped at it without hesitation.

"What's your name?" she asked finally, her supernatural spear already pointing in his direction, causing him to gulp.

He slightly backed away, "Hetaro Kenshi," he told her reluctantly. She gaped - This must be the 'loyal and calculating partner-in-crime'. They didn't look very alike if you'd ask her; Pale blue eyes, like those that the waiter had, spiky blonde hair, also like the waiter, his facial structure was like the waiter's too - _Oh! He **was **the waiter, how could I not tell earlier?! _she reprimanded herself silently.

"Hakeno and Hetaro," she said to herself thoughtfully, "You did all of this just for your Brother's crush?" she asked him confusedly, not seeing how one can see so much potential in stalking.

"Hai - Hakeno is my only family, I will do what I have to, to keep him safe, even if I have to eliminate the object of his affections," he explained - He really was ever loyal.

"That's really nice of you," she said softly, smiling at him sadly, knowing what she would have to do in the end.

* * *

"I tire of your games," Byakuya informed him coolly, two fingers sitting infront of his face, aligned perfectly with the bridge of his nose, "Bakudo,#61: Rikojo Koro," he said quietly, just above a whisper.

The six, wide beams of light came from all sides to incapacitated the hardly-standing, one-armed man who flimsily swung his Zanpakuto in his off-hand. He was paralyzed and his jaw fell slack as they stabbed into his every side, holding him in place.

"I'm truly sorry it had to end this way," Byakuya told him, rather insincerely, "But I will do whatever is needed of me to protect those important to me," after the words left his mouth, he felt like that orange-haired Ryoka boy had momentarily taken over his body; that would explain the over-protective feelings that came about when thoughts of Yuzu being in mortal harm came to mind.

"Senbonzakura Kageyoshi," such a monotonous command when he was about to send someone off from their afterlife was truly appalling, but oh so very Byakuya.

Hakeno gulped, he knew what this meant, he was done for, he could do nothing, could hardly even breath. He watched in awe as they were surrounded by five tiers of pink, glowing blades that were lined up perfectly and neatly, the Zanpakuto was a perfectionist like its Master.

"Shukei: Hakuteiken," The swords scattered into innumerable amounts of deadly cherry blossom petals and rushed toward Byakuya eagerly. From his back, materialized luminescent wings of light pink, a matching halo-like crown adorned the air above his head - Lastly, within his grasp stood a visibly formidable sword, bigger than his katana, made from his Bankai's materials and his own reiatsu - The death of all who would face Byakuya's wrath was upon this poor man.

"Angel of Death," Hakeno murmured, resigning himself to his fate, before Byakuya's arm dropped and with it, the power-infused sword that he clutched onto, without hesitation. Byakuya watched, seemingly without regret, pain or disgust as his own sword fell over the man like the cold blade of a reprimanding guillotine, harshly splitting his upper and lower half to fall out of his Bakudo and separate over the blood-stained floor.

* * *

Something snapped within Hetaro's mind - He knew what it meant. His Brother was gone - He should've known that he couldn't handle the infamous Captain Kuchiki, how could he have been so naive? They had never expected even her, practically an angel, to melt the thick layer of ice encasing the Sixth Taicho's heart. But now, he had lost his brother over it.

Instead of looking at her with anger, his eyes only softened with sorrow, he lurched forward, startling her - His hands and knees touched the ground as he looked down, sobs and whimpers escaping his mouth and the splashing of tears over the stone-cold floor reverberated throughout the room, "Please, kill me too, I can't live without my Brother, he's all I have," he whispered pleadingly.

She understood his feelings, she wouldn't want to bear the loss of her Onii-chan either, but did she have the right to do this? He was literally begging on his hands and knees, yet she stands here frozen. Transparent tear drops start to fall from her eyes profusely, running paths down both sides of her face, pausing at her quivering jaw and then joining Hetaro's own on the hard floor. _You have to, Yuzu-chan - His Brother said he was loyal, but if this is what he wants, then you should atleast respect it. _lectured the sweet, understanding voice of her Zanpakuto, urging her on.

She nodded quickly, though he could not see. Her unearthly weapon was raised over her head in both delicate hands and she pointed the tip in his direction, "I'm so sorry.." she said solemnly, her tears becoming more frequent now, she turned her head away and tightly shut her eyes. She brought down the pole-arm, grimacing at the feeling of her weapon driving through flesh. She could feel the warm, crimson liquid pool up around her feet and she visibly cringed. Her Zanpakuto could feel her disgust and sealed itself quickly.

He let out one last grunt of life before falling limp, impaled through the chest by her harmonious, yet unnatural weapon.

Then she fainted..

* * *

When Yuzu awoke, she was greeted by the smell of Sakura trees, and a warm, pleasant feeling enveloping her. She instinctively snuggled closer to the feeling, though when she leaned her head towards it, it felt like the familiar feel of.. a man's chest!

She moved her head back and gawked at the sight. Byakuya Kuchiki was walking, his face forward throughout Soul Society, with a giant bundle in his hands, best recognized as his Lieutenant, Yuzu Kurosaki.

He didn't seem to mind the attention he got, but she sunk into his chest the minute she spotted a group of Shinigami women whispering amongst themselves - Gossiping, no doubt. "Kuchiki-taicho?" she asked meekly, looking up at him who had a slight smirk on his face.

"Hm?" he asked, looking down at her. She couldn't quite put her finger on it, but something about the stoic face he gave her seemed softer and kinder than it usually was.

"Where are you taking me?"

"The Kuchiki Manor, of course,"

"EHHHHH?!"

**Twenty Minutes More of Byakuya's Awkward Cradling of Yuzu-chaan~..**

After getting over the initial shock of how big the Kuchiki manor truly was, Yuzu was escorted by a maid to change into something 'more suitable of a lady accompanying Master Kuchiki', whatever that means. She was pampered and stuffed into a floral kimono of pink and white, _I wonder if those are Taicho's favorite colors, _she thought to herself.

Byakuya had wanted to confide in Yuzu what he was feeling, though he didn't wish to do it in the company of his nosy servants, so he had dragged her into his chambers, despite her incessant protests.

The Kuchiki heir seemed very curious about her behavior - He had 'calmly' walked down the corridor, only to peek into the room where he assumed to be Yuzu and that child's battleground - He had a gaping hole going right through his back to his torso, impaling him, though the weapon was gone and her Zanpakuto couldn't cause such damage. He looked at her and it became one of the few times he had truly panicked. He picked her up into his arms, only to find that the puddle of blood did not belong to her, thankfully. But he thought she'd be much more traumatized - Someone like her murdering someone wasn't something easily brushed off.

Just when he thought that he was safe to convey his feelings to her, her eyes widened and a whimper escaped her lips, "I.. I k-k-ki-killed someone!" she said, she certainly was traumatized, he guessed that the fall and shock had caused temporary amnesia.

"Yes, but you only did what he would've wanted," he deducted that the man had willingly given his life after her sensed his Brother's reiatsu fade from the Soul Society.

"His blood, I was soaked in it, that's why I felt so disgusting earlier," she explained, looking at her hands with a horrified expression as if they had a mind of their own, "I can't believe I did that.. How could I? I'm.. horrible," she sank down into the chair that Byakuya had forced her into.

He instinctively pulled her close to him and stroked her hair, feeling her warmth against him made him even more sure of his feelings, "You are not horrible," he stated clearly, while still showing his small affections, "I love you," he blurted out, though it was calm and without hesitation, "I plan to make you my wife, if that's suitable to you," he told her immediately after.

_What did he just say? He loves me?! This is a dream! _she told herself, she was surely being disillusioned by some mind trick, something to do with her killing that man - Her mind was playing a prank on her, that's it! She was going insane, of course - But something about this felt so real - Without even thinking, she nodded into his chest, though she didn't regret the thoughtless motion.

She pushed her away from his chest, much to her dismay. His hands let go of her sleek shoulders and his palms were placed gently on both sides of her face before his face descended upon hers, claiming her lips with his own pair. She immediately answered, as if it was the only thing that seemed right in the world. Her arms lightly wrapped around his neck, the interlocked creases resting over the nape.

He pushed her further down onto the sofa, his hands reaching around her waist to push her even closer to him than she had been moments ago. Her face flushed as his actions elicited a pleasured moan through their connected lips. His hands began roaming over her sides, her torso, everywhere in between. She pulled back, panting for breath, greedily taking air in and out of her lungs before being pulled back into a passionate kiss, which increased in intensity every move that Byakuya made.

"I love you, too," she said breathlessly.

* * *

_And that brings us to the very last chapter of the Story (Unless I decide to put up an epilogue or something) This is like, horrible, in my opinion. I know I could've done better, but oh well :c The romance aspect was a bit off, I feel - Feeling development, etc. The way the feelings were conveyed was a bit dry too, like - How does a Byakuya confess his undying love to you? :P_**  
**

_If any of you are curious, while this whole incident was going on, Karin, Ichigo and my OC, Reika were busy in the Fourth Division, witnessing the birth of their son (or nephew in Karin's case). I've decided his name will be Aishigoku, which doesn't really have a proper meaning because I made it up on the spot ;)_

_As much as I just criticized this story, I hope you enjoyed it, bye~ :3_

_P.S: I guess, if you guys want the Epilogue, you can tell me and I'll get on it right away ^_^ 3_


	9. Epilogue

_Okay. So here's the Epilogue, though I don't know if it's that great. I know that I didn't do this for a while, so that's why I stayed up until 4:35am writing this one and that is also why it is so shit :P Because I've got tired-crazy brains. Anyway, if any of you were interested in this, here's the Epilogue. Sorry for the wait and I hope you..._

_ENJOOYYYY~!_

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Yuzu lay eagle-spread over the satin sheets that screamed noble taste and her splayed out hands drummed a beat on her enlarged stomach. She smiled as she felt a response from her unborn child, a small, yet significant thump from the inside, a lump protruding from where she had patted.

"I'm so bored," she seemed to whisper to her stomach. Frowning sadly, she sighed exasperatedly and sat up, her arms cradling her already-supported belly, "Your Father is being so unfair. Not even letting me go and play with Aishi-kun!" she huffed childishly, biting her lip while she looked down at her gut.

Yuzu was now 25 years old and six months pregnant with Byakuya's child. It had been 7 years since the incident, but she still had the odd nightmare. It wasn't so much about some horrendous kidnap, or her gruesome murder, but just about him, sometimes even them.

Unbeknownst to anyone, she doubted he even noticed, but he had taken that book. The one he treasured so much and stored it in her Lieutenant's desk. She hoped to whoever was the ultimate being in the Soul Society – The.. err.. Soul King? – That there wouldn't be any inspections, if Byakuya found that, he would flip.

Sometimes she would slip out and read it under a blossoming tree – Sitting there with it, her long locks blowing in the breeze, while she rested her tired back on the sturdy trunk and her over-worked body would sink into the flower-infused grass gladly.

She knew what he had done was wrong, but she felt as though, if she had gone back and seen him lying there in god-knows-what condition, she would've broken down into tears. All in all, he wasn't so bad, she regrets not preventing his demise, but after seeing that picture, that unfamiliar churn in her gut returned full-force.

She had finished the hand-written novel many times over. She smiled when the hero would make funny remarks or be flamboyant to the point of dancing around the heroine seductively, even seeing her brother being described as a silly super villain made her giggle and when Karin came in, she couldn't help but admire how well he captured her brash personality.

The thing that scared her the most, also the reason she skipped the end whenever she re-read it after the first time, was that in the end, the hero dies. Hakeno writes that the character inspired by himself is killed by another, more suitable, man that harbors her affections. The man he described as a monster.

There was something she always kept with her from it though, the small little note left by him, showing her he was never truly insane:

_My plans are somewhat ridiculous and I can't seem to find why. Hetaro always told me how my emotions can sometimes be overbearing and I think I understand what he means. Yu-chan seems to be the only thing I have left in my existence, but as you can see from the book, I know where my affections will take me. _

_When I was alive, I knew that I couldn't fixate onto a child. I was a grown man, afterall – I didn't know what made her so important to me. Was it that spark in her big brown eyes or the way she braved her creeping repulsion to help some stranger who might damn well be evil? She'll probably see me as evil soon enough. My plans are rash, I know, but how else could I make her mine other than taking her? When I was sent to the farthest Rukongai district as a new soul, I was so confused, but I soon learnt that you had to take what you wanted the most. She's definitely what I want the most, but sadly, I know I am not what she wants._

_I guess we're both just playing cat and mouse.._

Everytime she read it, she could feel tears streaming down her face more and more, faster. Sometimes, she thought she would return to the Manor, or the Sixth division with tear-stains on her cheeks, going down to her jaw.

"Byakuya!" she whined out uncharacteristically loudly, bellowing throughout the abundant space of their now-shared Manor.

Her alarmed husband walked briskly, yet kept that sophisticated air about him while he did so, "What's wrong?" he asked, concern filled his usually-empty grey eyes as he stared at her sitting form.

"I want to go outside,"

"No,"

"Then I want to see Ichigo,"

No,"

"Karin?"

"Certainly not,"

"You have to let me see Aishi-kun, at least!" she yelled loudly, shocking him a bit, but his composure only showed a small crack in its impenetrable defense.

"I don't think-" he began, though he was cut off by her deep frown that creased her face. Her eyes then shone with that 'I-want-what-I-want' look and her mahogany eyes seemed to be so much more adorable than they were moments before, "Fine, I'll go get him," he surrendered. This was out of character for him, surrendering to a command from a woman? Byakuya Kuchiki? Wow. He turned and left the chamber, making sure to lock it again upon exiting and his feed padded lightly across the marble floors.

Byakuya Kuchiki, Captain of the Sixth Divison and now over 200 year old Husband and Father-to-be. He was somewhat over-protective when it came to Yuzu and his unborn child. After the incident, Byakuya was ever vigilant about those love-sick fools skipping after his wife, and no, it wasn't jealousy, it's called caution, okay?

He had no idea about any strange novel that had characters akin to him, the ryoka boy, the evil twin, his wife and that maniac family duo, but he was becoming increasingly worried about when Yuzu sneaks out from her office, carrying a large, paperback script. He only caught glimpses of it, as she scurried away quickly whenever he glanced up at her, tucking it away with the utmost secretion.

He just tried to keep his mind off of it, hoping it was nothing that could get her hurt in the long run. Deep down, he knew she was a capable fighter, she was still his Lieutenant afterall, but she had a lot of growing up to do, despite her sometimes childish actions being mildly entertaining to watch.

He lightly knocked on the doors to Ichigo's home, straightening out his Captain's haori, as to look dignified. He looked the ryoka boy straight in his sharp, brown eyes upon the door sliding open.

"What d'you want?" He was a little bitter about the whole 'stealing' his innocent sister away, spiriting her off to some far-off (more like, two doors away) castle and then having the guts to get her pregnant of all things.

"I wish to borrow your son," Byakuya returned quickly and saying it casually, as if asking to use one's child for an afternoon is completely normal.

"You.. what?" Ichigo looked at him, somewhat baffled. What the hell did he need his son for anyway? Who asks like that too? Even some pedophile would have a better approach than that.

The nobleman sighed, knowing this would take more work than he had anticipated, "As I cannot allow Yuzu to walk around too much.." he hesitated a bit, coughing to clear his throat, ".. in her condition. She would like to see your child, just for this evening," he explained in his monotonous voice.

"Oh, if it's for Yuzu, then.." he consented, turning around and cupping one half of his mouth with his right-hand, "Aishigoku, come 'ere!" he ordered loudly, his deep voice booming through the halls of the expansive home.

"Yes, Otou-san?" Aishigoku asked timidly, looking up cautiously, as if he wanted to see how much trouble he was in just from his Father's stare alone. When he looked up, he just saw that same, somewhat thoughtless, expression on his face and he smiled up at him.

"Oba-chan wants you to go over there for a bit, she's really lonely," Ichigo said sadly, giving Byakuya a scarce side glance and then pretty much pushing his son out of the house, "Have fun, okay? Tell her onii-chan said hi!" he told him quickly, before shutting the door.

"Hi, Oji-san!" Aishigoku greeted energetically, jumping up with a waving hand and a beaming smile of young, new teeth.

"Hello," he greeted with a stoic expression, his hands clasped tightly behind his back.

The walk back to the Manor was short and awkward. No one said anything but the seven year old boy was probably too young to actually identify that it was strange to walk side-by-side and not say a word beside greetings, though people his age were generally talkative, he knew his uncle wasn't interested in small talk, especially with a child.

"Oba-chan!" Aishigoku greeted her even more energetically as he had to Byakuya, jumping on the bed and snuggling up to her side, scarely covering half of her stomach with his short, slender arms, "I missed you, Oba-chan!" he told her, frowning sadly, before perking up at her wide smile.

"Aishi-kun! Oba-chan missed you, too," she pouted at him and he chuckled at her silly behavior. He always enjoyed being near his Aunty whenever he could – She was always so kind.

"You know, momma's going to have a new baby soon," he said happily, joyfully telling her about how her mother told him today that she was going to be having one really soon and he had to be a good big brother and if it's a girl, that he shouldn't be like her Onii-chan.

She sweatdropped at the image of another two girls being dotted on by a big brother with orange hair and an intimidating vibe, "That's great! I can't wait to see her," she said merrily, cuddling Aishigoku to her side snugly.

"You won't like this one better than me, will you?" It was his turn to pout and she giggled herself. She poked him in the side and he squealed with ticklish delight, telling her not to do that.

She looked over at her husband who was still standing at the door way, arms folded, back leaning against the varnished, wooden door with intricate patterns on it, "Come over here, Bya-kun," she said sweetly, using the nickname that he would kill anyone but her and Yachiru for using.

He did as he was told, mostly because he just secretly loved being near his wife whenever he could, he stood by the rim of the bed and looked at her questioning, "Hm?" he asked, she knew what he meant, even if it was such a vague question, hardly a sound.

She grabbed onto his arm, much to his surprise and tugged, hard. He fell backwards onto the bed, quickly maneuvering himself so that he couldn't crush either her or Aishigoku, "Come sit with us," she pleaded.

He shifted towards her more, not even bothering to reprimand her for doing that, as he could've hurt both her, their child and her.. their.. nephew, "Is there something you need?" he asked.

"Mhm," she told him, being as vague as he always was, though it seemed to irritate him. She gently propped Aishigoku up onto her lap and slid herself between Byakuya's outspread legs, leaning her back onto his toned chest, "I just needed this,"

"Eww," Aishigoku commented dryly, looking up at both of them. He looked at Byakuya in a quizzical fashion upon seeing the slight smirk on his face.

"You'll be doing this with your wife someday, Aishi-kun," Yuzu teased like an aunty should and hugged him closer, causing him to feel a light kick from their forming child, eliciting a giggle from Yuzu's nephew.

"No way! I'm not doing that gross stuff," he told her straight-forwardly.

"You think that's gross?" she turned towards Byakuya and let a mischief smirk dominate her features, she went to lean in before hearing a fake puking sound coming from Aishigoku, "Oh, fine," she slapped her hands tight over his eyes and then completed her action.

Byakuya was happy to receive the chaste kiss from his spouse and wrapped his arms around her tightly, his hands splaying out over her stomach and their precious child.

**THE END**

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_Thank you for reading guys! Review or don't, I don't mind :P Feedback is welcome, even if you're a meaniepants. Come at me! ;D_


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